Food Network’s Worst Cooks In America newest team member, Robert Irvine recently shared his favorite tips for mastering your kitchen and becoming a better cook. Here is what Robert wanted all of us home cooks to know that would help us in the kitchen:

1. Taste, taste, taste
“Itâ€™s simple: if you donâ€™t taste your dish until the end of the cooking process, how will you ever know if itâ€™s seasoned correctly? Develop the habit of tasting your food throughout the preparation process. One tip to internalize: you should never have to salt your food at the table if seasoned correctly beforehand. This can also lead to more confidence in experimenting with spices and flavors you might not otherwise have had a chance to try.”

2. Cook with vegetables
“Not only are vegetables the centerpiece of a healthy, well-balanced diet, but every adult should master the skill of cooking fresh vegetables. The good news is that itâ€™s actually really easy. Youâ€™ll feel better and be taking advantage of a delicious level of the food pyramid, all at the same time.”

3. Basic knife skills are essential, so be sure to learn them
“Basic knife skills make a cookâ€™s life far simpler and safer, prep time is quicker, fewer accidents will occur in the kitchen, and at the end of the day, knife skills are one of the fundamental basics of the kitchen. Invest in a good set of knives, and if you take care of them properly, they will last you a lifetime. To the point of learning to cook vegetables, mastering knife skills will allow you to cut those squash, peppers, cucumber, etc. the same size, which means the vegetables will cook evenly.”

4. A blender is a cookâ€™s best friend in the kitchen
“After knives, the blender is second in the list of tools you should acquire if you are serious about mastering the kitchen in 2011. A blender will allow you to make almost any sauce imaginable, but soups as well. Additionally, smoothies are a year-round breakfast treat, and nothing starts your morning off right like blending together a mix of orange juice, bananas and strawberries.”

5. Understand and learn temperature control
“While serving as a team captain for the “Worst Cooks in America” blue team, I learned that the number one kitchen mess up is temperature control. By following a recipeâ€™s instructions on heat and the various levels needed throughout most recipes, taking the time to educate oneself will eliminate the smell and taste of burnt food in your kitchen forever.”

Be sure to tune in to Worst Cooks In America on Food Network at 9 pm EST, as well as Robert Irvine’s other new series “Restaurant Impossible” which premieres on January 19th, 2011.